Shattered Ideals: The Rise of Higure
by Darkfire Knight
Summary: Akatsuki is finally defeated. But the kind, benevolent world that Naruto once knew is slowly dying out. He has saved Sasuke, and together, they will bring dusk to the current world full of hate and create a new one built on love. Rated M to be safe.
1. Hachibi vs Kyuubi

"Lady Tsunade, the enemy forces are at the gate. What shall I have the soldiers do?"

"Get ready. This will be a long and bloody fight." Tsunade replied. "I'm just glad that we were able to dethrone Danzo before they came. Otherwise, the results could've been disastrous."

"I'll inform everyone to take position. I give five minutes until the gate to the Village is breached." With that, the reporter ninja left.

"This could very well be the end of Konoha." Tsunade remarked.

"I won't let that happen." a voice boomed.

"Naruto." Tsunade replied. "I knew you'd come to talk to me about your battle status."

"I'm fighting. There's no way to deny me. I'm not going to sit back and-"

"Naruto, it's you he wants! And if you're out fighting, it'll only make his job easier!" Tsunade bellowed. "I gave you orders, and I want you to follow them!"

"Fine. I just thought that after five years of this, you'd have just a little faith in me." Naruto said quietly. "Granny, it's been five years since I saved the Village from Pain. I even defeated Danzo and gave you your job back! I thought that after all the growth you've seen from me, you might trust me. But I guess that I was wrong."

"Naruto, I can't deny that you've grown. Just look at you! You're probably the most powerful shinobi in this village right now."

"Then let me fight!" Naruto pleaded.

"I can't. I just can't. Naruto, I'm sor-" Tsunade said.

"Save it." Naruto said. He then departed.

As Naruto walked out of the Hokage's office, Kakashi Hatake, the main general of the Leaf, walked in.

"The enemy has begun their assault on the gate. I have long range ninjas taking them out from above, on top of the gate, but they are being bombarded by Madara's jutsu. There's no way to stop him." Kakashi said.

"Then you and I will go out and get him to fight us. That'll give the rest of our army time to fend off the enemy forces." Tsunade replied.

"Don't forget that he brought eight new jinchuuriki. And don't forget that Sasuke is one of them." Kakashi explained.

"Don't worry. We've been training to fight those who posess the bijuu within them. We won't have any trouble with them."

"Okay, I'll take your word for it." Kakashi said. "Let's get going."

"Right." Tsunade replied. The two shinobi left the Hokage's office and rushed to the battlefield.

* * *

Naruto had been told to not partake in the fight that was occurring. He could see from where he was, on top of the Village mountain, that the Leaf forces were not going to be able to uphold the gate. Naruto could hardly bare to just watch. He wanted to help his friends. He could see Neji in the front lines.

The gate shattered after a familiar face sent a blast of chakra at it.

"Sasuke..." Naruto whispered. Naruto made a few hand seals, and bit his thumb, drawing blood.

"Summoning Jutsu!" Naruto cried as he slammed his hand onto the ground beneath him.

"What now, Naruto?" a loud voice boomed.

"Gamabunta." Naruto said. "I need your help. I want Sasuke to notice you so that he'll come over here and fight me. My friends won't be able to match him. Sasuke will slaughter them."

"Alright. You got the wind and an exploding tag? 'Cause I got the oil." Gamabunta said.

"Right." Naruto replied. Naruto gathered wind chakra into his left hand, and drew a kunai from his pouch with his right. On the kunai was a tag.

Gamabunta spit a large amount of oil out of his mouth. Naruto then threw the wind chakra and kunai from his hands into the oil. A large amount of fire resulted.

* * *

Madara saw the explosion of fire that was close to the Village mountain.

"Sasuke, he's there!" Madara said, gesturing at the fire. "Go get him!"

Sasuke ran through the village quickly, incapacitating anyone who got in his way. Soon enough, he was seeing Naruto for the first time in five years.

"Long time, huh, Naruto?" Sasuke muttered.

"Yeah." Naruto replied. "Guess it has been." Naruto formed three shadow clones.

"Still using those things? They aren't going to work on me." Sasuke said confidently.

"That's right, you haven't seen any of my new techniques. Well, check this out!" Naruto announced. He formed a Rasengan in his hand, and the three clones began to pump wind chakra into it. After a few seconds, Naruto raised the Rasengan above his head and the ball began to expand into a giant shuriken-like mass.

"What is that?" Sasuke said.

"Wind Release." Naruto replied. "Rasenshuriken!"

Naruto and his shadow clones rushed at Sasuke.

"Still charging straight in? You think you'll hit me that way?" Sasuke said, taunting Naruto. He formed a Chidori in his left hand.

"Sasuke!" Naruto and his clones yelled. They were a few feet away from Sasuke. Naruto lunged at Sasuke.

"Chidori!" Sasuke cried, as he ducked and plunged the electric mass into Naruto's chest. A puff of white smoke appeared.

"Rasengan!" Naruto cried, as he ran at Sasuke from behind. He hit Sasuke in the upper back. Sasuke gave a cry of pain as he was sent hurtling into the sky. Sasuke landed about thirty feet from Naruto's position.

Naruto dispelled his remaining shadow clones.

"You've gotten better with your strategy." Sasuke said, wiping blood from his mouth as he rose from the ground. A light wound was carved into his flesh.

"I've gotten better at lots of things." Naruto replied.

"Yes, but you're still holding back." Sasuke said. "You won't be able to beat me until you've accepted the fact that to do that, you must kill me."

"I'm going to win this fight. And I promise you, I am not going to kill you." Naruto responded.

"Just keep telling yourself that." Sasuke said. He drew his sword. "If you won't kill me, then I'm going to kill you!"

Sasuke charged at Naruto. Naruto formed six shadow clones, which ran at the oncoming Sasuke. Sasuke sliced through them with ease.

Sasuke met Naruto in a clash of steel.

"What the hell?" Sasuke said. He saw Naruto holding a two-sided blade, that was about four feet long, with a handle in the middle.

"I got this just about a year ago. Do you like it?" Naruto said, tauntingly.

The two dueled with their swords for a few minutes, neither one being able to land a blow. They were equal in skill.

"Enough of this fooling around! Mangekyou Sharingan!" Sasuke yelled. His eyes morphed into a new design that Naruto had not seen before.

"What the..." Naruto said. "What happened to the old Mangekyou design?"

"I took Itachi's eyes. I now possess the eternal Mangekyou Sharingan. Of course, all of the abilities are the same. I just won't go blind." Sasuke explained.

"You...monster..." Naruto said. "You took Itachi's power and used it in a way he didn't want it to be used!"

"Amaterasu!" Sasuke yelled. Black flames enveloped Naruto. Naruto began to scream. Then a puff of smoke appeared.

"Another shadow clone." Sasuke surmised. "Damn."

"Behind you!" Naruto yelled. He plunged his sword into Sasuke's back, in a non-vital spot.

"Ah!" Sasuke yelped.

Naruto removed his sword from its meat sheath and strapped it to his back.

"Rasengan!" Naruto announced. Sasuke had turned around and was barely able to block Naruto's attack with a Chidori.

Sasuke broke the connection between the two jab techniques and jumped high. He landed twenty feet away from Naruto.

"Susanoo!" Sasuke bellowed. A large, demonic figure with hands that had six fingers on each hand emerged. It was about as big as Gamabunta was.

A hand zoomed at Naruto.

Naruto closed his eyes and reopened them. They now had an outline of red, and his pupils had become small rectangles.

"Sage Mode..." Sasuke said.

"Sage Technique: Rasenrengan!" Naruto yelled. He blasted the hand of Susanoo apart when his attack connected.

The demonic figure gave a long howl of pain.

"What?" Sasuke gasped. "No one's ever been able to damage Susanoo before..."

"I've improved greatly with Sage Mode. Which I learned, by the way. I can gather natural energy in about a half of a second. And I can sustain this power for a total of two hours at a time." Naruto explained to his foe. "So you're going to need a better trick than that behemoth to defeat me."

"God damn you, Naruto!" Sasuke yelled. "Susanoo, get him!"

Naruto rushed at the giant, while another hand zoomed at him.

Naruto stopped running, and announced, "Wind Release: Rasengan!" The attack blew off Susanoo's other hand.

"Now to finish you! Sage Art: Great Ball Rasenshuriken!" Naruto formed a Senjutsu-enhanced Great Ball Rasengan, and held it over his head in two hands. Five clones formed around him, which added wind chakra to the attack. A giant Rasenshuriken formed. Naruto hurled the disk at the giant behemoth; A large explosion enveloped the being. Shreds of Susanoo's body were all that remained.

"Naruto...how...how did you get so strong?" Sasuke said. "I've never been...able to..."

"I'm going to defeat you!" Naruto yelled. He rushed at Sasuke, who was still in shock at what Naruto had done; he was pale white.

"Rasengan!" Naruto yelled. He threw his arm out, and expected to hit Sasuke head on, but Sasuke stepped out of the way at the last second.

"I'm going to need an extreme power to defeat you." Sasuke said.

"What does that mean?" Naruto asked. He didn't need an answer.

Sasuke's body was being enveloped in a purple, foamy substance.

"You didn't..." Naruto said.

"I did." Sasuke replied. Three tentacle-like tails formed behind Sasuke's coat of chakra. "Madara sealed the Hachibi, the Eight Tails, within me."

Two more tails appeared.

"How do you already have this much control? It took me five years to gain control of only seven tails." Naruto exclaimed, as he saw the three last tails form.

"Are you ready, Naruto?" Sasuke cried. He ran at Naruto at full speed.

Naruto began to form his own chakra cloak, which amounted to seven tails. He ran at Sasuke.

The two clashed, in a meeting of red and purple. Naruto was blasted back.

"Damn."

The two ran at one another again, and Naruto was sent sailing backwards.

"Kyuubi...Give me your full power! Let me control it!" Naruto cried out.

Naruto and Sasuke clashed once more.

"You can't beat me Naruto!"

"Sasuke!"

Sasuke drove his hand through Naruto's chest.

"No..." Naruto gasped.

Naruto fell to the ground, and blood began to pool beneath him.

"Kyuubi, give me your full power...Or...Or we'll...both die..."

Naruto felt his heart start to beat faster. His wound was heating up intensely. Naruto could feel his body beginning to heal.

"What is this?" Sasuke asked. "Why is that wound healing? Madara told me that seven tails couldn't heal a wound like that!"

"That's because I don't have seven tails." Naruto said, getting to his feet. He connected his gaze with Sasuke's. "I have nine."

"No...How did you...?"

Naruto rushed at Sasuke and attacked with full force. Naruto steadily began to push Sasuke back, until he hit a wall of rock. They were at the base of the Village Mountain. Naruto pounded a wind chakra-enhanced punch into Sasuke's chest.

"Damn it..." Sasuke gasped. He had taken too much damage, and his cloak was beginning to recede.

Naruto made about twenty hand seals.

"Forbidden Art: Bijuu Extraction Jutsu!" Naruto cried. Naruto formed a claw with his left hand and struck Sasuke in the chest. Sasuke yelped. Naruto pulled his hand back, and slowly, purple chakra began to come out of Sasuke. With one last, powerful tug, seven of the eight tails within Sasuke were pulled out of him.

"Aaaaagghhhhh!" Sasuke screamed. He writhed on the ground, in pure agony.

"Fuck you, Naruto!"

Naruto dealt a blow to the back of Sasuke's head, knocking him out. Naruto unrolled a scroll that he had in his pouch. He formed a half hand seal, and the purple mass that was writhing in his left hand was sealed into the scroll. Naruto stared at Sasuke's limp body.

"I did it, Sasuke. I've finally defeated you."


	2. Lee's Progress

**Chapter 2-Lee's Progress**

"Lee, have you seen the other two hosts yet?" Neji asked, as the two fought off the countless enemy shinobi that were attacking them.

"Not yet. But I saw Hinata escape with the captured Bijuu scrolls." Rock Lee said to Neji.

"Good. Now we just have to find the last two and seal them." Neji replied.

"Neji," Lee said, after examining around, "Where's Tenten?"

"She's right behind..." Neji said. He turned around.

"Where'd she go?" Rock Lee asked.

"I don't know...Byakugan!" Neji said. He scanned the area for Tenten, and finally located her.

"She's about fifty meters to the east. Let's go!" Neji exclaimed.

"Right!" Lee replied. The two ran quickly, and soon found themselves in the Forest of Death.

"There!" Neji said, pointing at Tenten, who was fighting someone.

"Tenten!" Rock Lee shouted, as he jumped in between Tenten and her enemy.

"Oh...crap..." Neji muttered. He was staring at a woman, a bit older than himself, who had begun to transform into a beast. Her arms had become large, with orange fur.

"That's a jinchuuriki!" Lee exclaimed. "And she's already transforming!" He looked at Neji.

"Lee, get your technique ready. I'll stall her." Neji said. He rushed at the jinchuuriki, who began to sprout small tails.

"She's transforming too fast! I'll never have it ready in time!" Lee said.

"Don't worry!" Neji replied. He engaged the girl in hand to hand combat, trying to find the location of her seal. But he could not find it.

"Lee, we have a problem." Neji said. "She doesn't have a seal!"

"What?" Lee shouted. "How am I supposed to use my technique then? It requires the presence of a seal!"

"I know, I know!" Neji cried, as he continued to fend off the woman, whose torso began to expand.

"No..." Neji said. He jumped up and landed twenty feet from the jinchuuriki. The girl's body was gone; it was replaced by a giant gorilla-type monster that had four tails.

"Lee, get ready! We're out of time! You need to use Naruto's jutsu!" Neji yelled.

"I can't! You know that I can't perform ninjutsu!"

"He was teaching you how to do it, right?" Neji replied. "There's no time for what you can and can't do, you have to try!"

Rock Lee was paralyzed with fear. He only knew how to restrain the beasts until someone else came to seal them.

"Okay, I think I have an idea!" Rock Lee yelled. He took a wide stance, and began to open his chakra gates.

"Gate One: Gate of Opening! Release!"

The air around Lee began to swirl around.

"Lee, what are you doing? That won't help us right now!" Tenten cried. "Besides, that thing'll just crush you if you stay stationary!"

As Tenten said that, a giant, orange arm flew down at the group. All three jumped out of the way.

"Gate Two: Gate of Healing! Release!" Lee bellowed.

"Gate Three: Gate of Life! Release!"

"Gate Four: Gate of Pain! Release!"

"Gate Five: Gate of Limit! Release!" Lee began to glow green, and chakra began to swirl around his body.

The giant gorilla gave a loud howl, and sent a blast of chakra from its mouth at Rock Lee.

"Lee, no!" Neji cried, as the blast connected. A flash of white ensued; after the temporary light had vanished, Lee was still standing.

"How did..." Tenten and Neji wondered at the same moment.

"Gate Eight: Gate of Death! Release!"

"No, don't! You'll die!" the two teammates of Rock Lee screamed.

"Get...ready...to seal...it..." Lee muttered.

Lee disappeared and reappeared behind the bijuu.

"How did he move that fast?" Tenten exclaimed.

Rock Lee gave a loud, booming war cry, and blasted the beast in the back of the head.

The jinchuuriki-bijuu gave a loud howl of pain. It spun around, and swung, but Rock Lee was already gone.

"READY!" Lee bellowed. He gathered all of his chakra into his left arm. It was enveloped in a teal cloak.

"Haaaaaah!" Lee cried. He sent a forceful punch into the beast's chest.

The beast began to cry and howl due to the pain. It was frozen in a giant mass of chakra, that was pulling at it from all sides.

"Oh...my...God..." Neji breathed. "Tenten...how did he get...so strong?"

"I...I don't know..." she replied.

The chakra that enveloped the bijuu gathered at the back and pulled. Soon enough, a black mass was being pulled from the beast.

"That's it!" Neji said, making a dozen hand seals. "Eight Trigrams: Hell Spin!"

The usual spinning ball of chakra that Neji used to protect himself formed, not around him, but around the black mass that had emerged from the beast. He connected a line of chakra to the ball and began to pull it towards himself.

"Get something to seal this into." Neji instructed Tenten.

"Yes." she replied, grabbing a scroll from a pocket on her jacket. She unrolled it, and ran a bit of blood along the paper.

"Good, just like last time." Neji said. "Eight Trigrams: Sealing of the Corrupt!"

Eight drops of blood floated off of the paper and fused with the rotating chakra ball. Then, the blood on the paper jumped at the chakra ball, and covered it. It receded into the paper, and the demon was sealed.

The jinchuuriki was on the ground, writhing from the shock of having her bijuu stripped from her.

"She'll be alright." Neji said to Tenten, who had a sympathetic look on her face. "I'm more worried about Lee."

The two walked over to where Rock Lee had landed. Lee's body was basically destroyed. His flesh, in some parts, had been ripped from the bone, and his top layer of skin was gone.

"Lee..." Tenten said, tearing up a little.

"Ten...t...en..." Lee muttered, almost inaudibly.

"How are you...alive?" Neji breathed.

"Medic! We need a medic! He's stopped breathing!"

* * *

Sakura could hear someone calling for a medic. She ran into the forest, and what she saw horrified her.

"What happened to him?" Sakura asked.

"He released all eight inner gates." Neji replied.

"I'll try to heal him, but I can't promise you anything." Sakura said. Green began to envelop Lee's whole body.

After a few minutes, Lee began to cough violently as he awoke.

"How did he survive opening the eighth gate?" Neji wondered.

"He's healed, but he's going to need about a month or more of bed rest before he can even walk again." Sakura said, as the remaining green chakra receded into her hands.

Neji scooped Rock Lee into his arms.

"Tenten, let's get him to the hospital." Neji said.

"Right." Tenten replied.

The two ran as fast as they could to the hospital, which was located in the caves behind the Village Mountain. On the way there, they saw Naruto standing over a motionless Sasuke.

"You beat him?" Neji asked.

"Yep. Of course I did." Naruto said.

"What are you going to do now?" Tenten asked.

"I'm going to find Madara and I'm going to kill him." Naruto said. "What happened to Bushy Brow?"

"He opened the eighth chakra gate and almost died because of it." Neji explained. "But somehow, he survived. So we're taking him to the hospital."

"Let me take him. You two can go rejoin the battle." Naruto said.

"Okay." the other two replied.

Naruto zoomed to the hospital, and dropped Lee off there. He could feel a faint chakra coming from Lee's torso.

'Weird.' Naruto thought, as he left the makeshift hospital and walked outside. Sasuke was still in the same spot Naruto had left him.

Suddenly, a blast of black fire engulfed a large portion of the sky.

Naruto threw a kunai at the spot, and he himself arrived at the spot where the kunai hit a half of a second later.

"You learned his technique, then?" Madara addressed Naruto, as soon as he arrived.

"Of course I learned my father's technique. And I've also improved it greatly." Naruto replied. He made a hand sign and a hundred shadow clones formed around Madara, encircling him.

"Are you ready to die, Madara Uchiha?"


	3. The Secret to Defeating Madara

**A/N: To my readers, I'm sorry about the time between chapters. I'd make excuses, but they aren't true. Honestly, I just lost interest in the story for a while, but I'm back for now. Enjoy the new chapter. - Darkfire Knight**

"You think that you can kill me?" Madara asked, in a mocking tone.

"Yes." Naruto replied. "I do."

Naruto entered Sage Mode quickly.

"I see you've already incapacitated both the Hokage and my sensei." Naruto said to Madara.

"They were weak. They weren't even worth killing. So I trapped them in an eternal genjutsu."

"Bastard." Naruto said. "But once I kill you, they'll be released from it."

"If you're so sure that you can beat me, then prove it!" Madara shouted, his single Sharingan eye widening.

Naruto drew a kunai from his pouch and charged at Madara. He sliced at him, but his attack passed right through Madara's body.

"Seems like you might have some trouble after all." Madara said, sneering.

"Shut up!" Naruto responded. Naruto threw his kunai at Madara, but it passed right through him.

"You don't ever learn, do you boy!" Madara laughed. He charged at Naruto and landed a blow in the pit of Naruto's stomach. He then threw an uppercut, and then a roundhouse kick that sent Naruto flying across the clearing they were fighting in.

Naruto made a hand seal and five shadow clones appeared around him. The clones rushed at Madara, each wielding a Rasengan.

"You think that those will defeat me?" Madara taunted.

Madara dodged two of the clones, and dealt each a blow to the head on each, which caused them to disappear. The other three each attacked in the same instant, and all three Rasengan attacks passed right through Madara. Madara drew a kunai and slit the throats of the three clones, which all disappeared in a large puff of white smoke.

Suddenly, a pair of hands flew up from the ground beneath Madara and held him in position. A few shuriken flew at him, and they stuck inside his body.

"So my theory is correct." Naruto said. "You have a time limit after each use of your technique until you can use it again. Just like Pain's technique. That means that I can beat you."

"So..." Madara began. "You've figured it out. Don't think that knowledge is the only thing that will beat me."

Madara began to walk toward Naruto.

"You'll soon find out that I have many more techniques."

"Oh really." Naruto replied. "Well then show me!"

"My pleasure!" Madara replied. He made several hand seals, and then charged at Naruto. Naruto was ready to meet the attack head on, but Madara was too quick; he slammed his fist into Naruto's chest, and then threw a hook, which sent Naruto crashing to the ground.

"How did you do that?" Naruto said, getting up. He jumped back a few feet to distance himself from his enemy. "I was ready to intercept that attack, but you still landed your punch."

Madara charged at Naruto again; Naruto jumped high in the air and formed a shadow clone.

"Wind Release: Wind Drill Rasengan!"

Naruto and his clone formed a Rasengan, and added wind chakra to it. Then Naruto threw the attack at Madara. It connected. On impact, the attack began to drill through Madara's body; when the attack finally dissapated, a hole of 8 inches in diameter was present in Madara's chest.

Naruto landed on the ground easily.

"I did it." Naruto gasped. "I killed him."

Naruto strutted to the spot where Madara's body was.

"I wonder what he looks like." Naruto wondered. His right hand reached toward the mask, but a black hand grasped his before he could touch the mask.

"I'm not quite dead, yet." Madara exclaimed, looking directly into Naruto's eyes.

"Oh...crap..." Naruto said. He couldn't move.

"Are you ready to have your bijuu extracted, Naruto Uzumaki?" Madara said, pinning Naruto to the ground with four kunai knives.

"Re..." Naruto mumbled. He could barely speak.

"Of course, I've had to model my new jutsu after the ones that you pesky Leaf ninja use. I have to say, whoever came up with the bijuue extraction that doesn't kill the host is very brilliant. However, my jutsu is a tad different from that one. Mine will still kill you. And, I have to say, it's almost unbearable. The pain you'll feel is...well, I don't think there's a word to describe how painful your experience will be. So, let's begin." Madara explained.

Madara placed his hand on Naruto's seal, which was located on his stomach.

Naruto could feel a pulsing motion in his abdomen; he felt a bit queasy.

"It's time for my plan to finally come to fruition." Madara said. "Demon Jutsu: Unholy Extraction!"

Naruto screamed. It felt to him like his insides were being torn from him, as Madara began to pull his hand backward. A red, foamy substance began to leak from Naruto's seal.

"No...No...RELEASE!"

Naruto's whole body became enveloped in the red substance, and he ripped his arms from the kunai that trapped them down. He then ripped his legs from the other two.

"How did you...?" Madara began. "Not even Killer Bee could escape this jutsu!"

Naruto's wounds began to heal due to the fox's chakra; within thirty seconds, he was ready to fight again.

Naruto was currently in Sage-Kyuubi Mode, having mixed his Kyuubi chakra with his Natural chakra.

"I'm going to kill you once and for all, you bastard!" Naruto cried, getting down on all fours and charging at Madara. Naruto made six shadow clones.

Madara took a defensive stance, as all six Narutos charged at him. He used his jutsu, and all six passed through him.

"Shit." Two shadow clones burst out of the ground and secured Madara in place. A third appeared in front of him, wielding a Kyuubi-enhance Rasenshuriken.

The giant disk of red chakra was thrown at Madara; the result was a monstrous explosion. Dust picked up from the ground, and the area became clouded.

After the cloud of dust cleared, Madara's body lay in pieces on the ground.

"You can't heal yourself after an attack like that." Naruto said.

The pieces of Madara's body disappeared in a puff of white smoke.

"No!" Naruto exclaimed. "A shadow clone!"

"Right behind you, boy!" Madara yelled, a kunai in his hand. He stabbed Naruto in the back, and pulled the knife out. He repeated this five times.

Naruto fell to the ground. All of his clones disappeared.

"Now, let's try my removal technique once more." Madara said.

"Not so fast!" a voice cried.

Madara turned around and saw an enemy he did not expect.

"What are you doing?" Madara said. "Go back and fight the other Leaf ninja! We can still win, even if our forces are dwindling!"

"No." said the enemy. "Naruto has taught me a lot in the fights we've had. I'm just sorry it took me this long to figure it out. I can't destroy this village. Itachi wouldn't have wanted me to. He sacrificed everything for the safety of the villagers. I can't go on with you and your plan anymore, Madara. I quit."

"You quit? You can't quit!" Madara screamed. He charged at his enemy, who swiftly drew his sword.

The two dueled for a few minutes, which gave Naruto time to devise a new plan.

"Sasuke, this isn't your fight! Get out of here before he kills you! Let me finish him!"

Sasuke complied, throwing one more attack at his former mentor, and then disappearing.

Madara turned around to find himself faced with a thousand Narutos.

"No..." Madara said.

"Haggghhhh!" all thousand clones yelled in unison. They all flew at Madara, who attempted to let them pass through them.

HOwever, they all threw specially marked knives behind him, and soon appeared there. They all took their copies of Naruto's sword, and plunged them into Madara's back. All of the clone repeated this process for about ten seconds.

Madara fell to the ground, and his mask smashed on the ground.

Naruto turned him over.

"Now...Who are you?"


	4. Revelations and Repercussions

**Chapter 4 - Revelations and Repercussions**

"No..."

An orange mask lay on the ground next to the fallen Madara. Naruto couldn't believe who he was looking at.

Sasuke appeared next to Naruto.

"That's...the Fourth..."

"My father." Naruto said.

"N...Nar...u...to..." Minato murmured.

"Dad..." Naruto began. "W...Why?"

"When I...sealed the Kyuubi...inside you..." Minato said to his son. "...I took part of...the Yin chakra...and was transformed...into this...My soul was split in half...This is one half...the other half...I left inside you...I...I took Madara's body...when he released the Kyuubi on the Village...and became a new being...this being. My spirit was...overshadowed...by his, and...I became evil. But I'm in...control now. I'm sorry...I only...wanted to help...protect_...you_..._"_

"Dad..."

"Naruto...I'm...so..."

The father of Naruto did not say anything after that.

"Father." Naruto muttered, tears beginning to stream down his face.

"Naruto." Sasuke said. "He wasn't your father. Don't cry over him. That man lying there is not your father."

"Yes, it is." Naruto replied. "He's finally free of being trapped in a body with Madara. He's finally free to rest in peace."

* * *

Within an hour of Naruto's victory over Madara, the enemy forces were obliterated. The Leaf Village had prevailed.

But there were heavy casualties; a thousand shinobi were dead, and many more were injured. Victory had come at a steep price. Many of the generals had died.

* * *

A funeral was held for all those that were killed a week after the battle. Among those being honored were several of Naruto's friends: Iruka, Konohamaru, Ebisu, Sai, Choji, Shikamaru, Ino, and Hinata.

The entire village attended the veneration of those lost.

At the funeral, Naruto sat with Sakura. She was devastated at the loss of so many. She cried openly, as did Naruto.

Sasuke attended, but was not seen. He was hidden off to the side; Naruto had told everyone that after their initial battle, he had fought Sasuke again and killed him. He did this to keep others from attacking Sasuke, who had switched sides at the very end of the battle against Madara.

Tsunade gave a speech at the funeral.

"We are all here to lament the loss of so many of our fine, respected, and loved shinobi. They fought a brave fight. And though they will be missed, we must know that they will never be gone. They will live forever in our memories of them. The men and women that died will live on in our hearts. May we never forget them and the sacrifice they made to preserve the peace of our Village."

* * *

Two days had passed since the funeral. In that time, Naruto had given Sasuke the bijuu chakra he had stolen back. The two were ready to announce Sasuke's intentions.

The next day, Naruto entered the Hokage's office.

"I've been expecting you, Naruto." Tsunade said.

"Yeah, well, there's some things I need to discuss with you." Naruto replied.

"First, I have some questions." Tsunade began. "My first question: how did you defeat Sasuke?"

Naruto said, "I used a mix of Sage and Kyuubi chakra to force him into submission. I used my most powerful version of Rasenshuriken to destroy Susanoo, and I was able to best him in our sparring match."

"Alright. Next, how did you defeat Madara? And who was he?"

"I used my father's technique. I guess you can call me the Second Yellow Flash of the Leaf." Naruto responded.

"And Madara's true identity?"

Naruto became solemn.

"My father."

"What?"

"The Fourth Hokage. He was Madara."

"But how is that possible?" Tsunade asked.

Naruto said, "When my dad sealed the Kyuubi within me, he split its chakra into two portions: the Yin and Yang. He sealed the Yang within me. That is the chakra I have access to. He sealed half of the Yin chakra away with the Death God. But my father sealed the second half of the Yin chakra within himself.

"At that point, he split his soul in half: The first half of his soul was taken by the Death God that sealed the Kyuubi inside me. The second half split into two again; the first became an imprint in my mind that appears at crucial times. The second half attempted to take over the real Madara after Madara summoned the Kyuubi. My father's attempt failed; the two souls blended, but Madara's became dominant. That's why Tobi always seemed to be aloof. That was my father's spirit showing. But later on, Madara began to take most of the control over their shared body. It was because of the presence of two souls that Madara lost his eternal Mangekyou Sharingan, and that the body's appearance changed completely.

"After I had dealt the fatal blow during my battle with him, my father's spirit became dominant, and explained all of this to me."

"That's...unreal..."

"But it's true." Naruto replied.

"Alright, then. I have no more questions. What else do you want to talk to me about?" Tsunade said to Naruto.

"I want to talk about Sasuke. I didn't really kill him. In fact, I gave him his bijuu back, and he's currently in the Village."

"WHAT?" Tsunade screamed. "How could you keep this a secret? You've betrayed the Leaf. Naruto, he tried to destroy the Village!"

"He's changed! Just give him a chance!" Naruto pleaded.

"If he's not gone in five minutes, I'm going to send out squads to find him. He won't survive." Tsunade said adamantly.

"So...that's how it has to be, huh?" Naruto said. "I thought that this Village was a place of forgiveness. One of mercy, and of kindness. But I guess I was wrong."

* * *

Naruto had been searching the Village for ten minutes, trying to find Sasuke. He heard someone shouting a few feet away, around a corner. Naruto walked to the source of the noise.

"Let me go! I'm on your side!" Sasuke yelled.

"Hokage's orders. You're coming with us!" one of five ninja said. Sasuke was restrained by ropes.

Sasuke fell silent and stopped struggling.

"Don't do this! You're making a huge mistake!" Naruto cried, approaching his fellow shinobi.

"No, Naruto. I brought this on myself. Just let it be." Sasuke said.

Sasuke was taken away.


	5. Defection

**Chapter 5 - Defection**

Sasuke was brought to the Hokage's office. Naruto followed.

Tsunade was waiting for the group to bring Sasuke to her. When everyone arrived, she began to speak.

"Sasuke Uchiha, you have committed heinous crimes against this Village. You have killed your fellow ninja, and you have slaughtered countless civilians. You are the only member of Akatsuki left. I hereby declare you to be put to death by execution. You will be executed in three days." Tsunade said.

Sasuke didn't say anything, only looked down. He was completely solemn.

"But Granny, he switched sides at the end of the war! He helped me defeat Madara!" Naruto pleaded.

"That does not make up for everything else he did. My decision is final. Sasuke, may fate look kindly upon you."

* * *

Naruto visited Ichiraku Ramen later that day. He ordered a very small amount of food, which the shop owner thought to be very strange.

"What's wrong, Naruto? Not hungry today?" he said.

"I don't really want to talk about it. Sorry." Naruto said. He got up, and left the small restaurant.

"Naruto, long time no see!" said a familiar voice.

"Hey, Iruka." Naruto replied.

"What's the matter? Why the long face?" Iruka asked.

"Have you heard what our 'kind' Hokage is going to do to Sasuke?" Naruto said.

"No, what?"

"He's going to be executed!" Naruto cried.

"Well, it serves him right. Anything else besides death is too good for him." Iruka siad coldly.

"Don't you ever say that again! You have no idea what you're talking about!" Naruto said. He walked away from Iruka and walked home.

On his way, he saw Lee walking with a crutch. Along with him were Neji and Tenten.

Naruto also saw another person following them, trying to catch up to them. He finally did. He grabbed Neji and pulled him aside.

The man looked somewhat like Neji, but he was much older, and had longer hair.

"What are you talking about?" Neji yelled. "Why did you lie to me?"

Naruto walked to his house, and entered it. He fell asleep promptly.

* * *

Three days passed, and it was the day of Sasuke's execution. Sasuke had been brought to the base of the Village mountain, where all of the villagers had gathered. Ten minutes later, the Hokage arrived, bearing a large, ceremonial katana.

"Sasuke Uchiha," the Fifth Hokage began. "You are accused of killing innocent people, causing destruction throughout the country, and rebelling against Konohagakure. How do you plead?"

A mutter escaped Sasuke's lips. He couldn't bare to think that he was about to lose his life, just when he had finally gotten it back.

"What was that?" the Hokage said.

"GUILTY!" Sasuke bellowed, his voice ringing through the area. "I'm guilty!"

"So be it." Lady Tsunade said. She unsheathed the sword she was carrying. The blade was tinted red, and the handle had assorted jewels embedded into it. On the end of the handle was a large, egg-sized ruby. "Let the execution commence!"

A group of seven people, all dressed in red robes and hoods, approached the ceremony.

"I will now give Sasuke his first cut." said the first of the group. He took the sword from the Hokage and approached Sasuke, who was strapped to a beam that was embedded perpendicular to the ground.

The red-robed man swung the mighty katana from his left to his right, causing a deep gash to appear in Sasuke's left side.

Sasuke gave no appearance of pain as he endured his cuts, which he was informed he would receive one hundred of.

The second person robed in red stepped toward Sasuke. She received the katana from the first one in red.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke..." she said almost inaudibly.

"...Sakura?" Sasuke whispered.

Sakura took her slice, which left Sasuke with a mark across his chest.

The process of cutting continued for twenty minutes, during which time ninety cuts had been administered. Sasuke was bleeding profusely from all over his body. His breathing had slowed; his heart was working twice as fast as normal to resupply blood to his body. However, this blood was seeping out of his wounds. In short, Sasuke was dying.

"Why doesn't he heal himself with the Hachibi?" some of the people in the crowd asked. Only Sasuke knew the answer.

'I've hurt so many people. I don't deserve to live.' Sasuke thought to himself as his ninety-ninth cut was administered. Sasuke could feel that he only had a few breaths left.

As the last executioner approached the site to administer the last cut, a commotion broke out in the crowd.

"Eight Trigrams: Sixty-four palms!"

Neji had attacked one of the spectators: his uncle, Hiashi Hyuga.

"What insolence!" Hiashi cried. He made a small hand seal; Neji clutched his head, fell to the ground, and began to scream in pain.

Everyone was too busy to see that Naruto had untied Sasuke and whisked him away to safety. A few seconds after that, Naruto returned and landed between Hiashi and Neji.

"Enough of this!" Naruto cried. He struck Hiashi with a wind chakra-enhanced punch, which sent him flying away. Naruto picked Neji up from the ground and made his getaway.

"After him!" bellowed the Fifth Hokage, Lady Tsunade. None of the shinobi present responded.

"Are you deaf?" Lady Tsunade screamed. "I said go after him! Get all three of them back!"

* * *

Naruto was fleeing away with Neji under one arm and Sasuke under the other. Sasuke's bleeding was getting too severe.

'I have to heal him.' Naruto thought.

"Sakura!" Naruto yelled. Out of the forest appeared his pink-haired friend.

"I'm ready to heal him. You focus on Neji. We have to hurry!" Sakura responded.

"Right."

Naruto removed Neji's headband, revealing a blue curse mark, in the form of two lines and an "x". Naruto bit his thumb, and spread his blood across the seal in a straight line.

"Father, please guide me in your own jutsu. Help me achieve what you achieved so long ago. Ninja Art: Hex Removal!"

The blood on Neji's forehead molded to fit the form of the seal. It glowed a brilliant white, and then the blood disappeared, along with it the seal.

Neji woke up.

"Good, you're awake. We're probably going to have some company soon, are you ready to fight?" Naruto said.

"Yes, I think I'll manage." Neji replied.

"Good."

Naruto turned around and saw that Sasuke was completely healed, with very minimal scarring from the cuts.

"You've gotten really good at healing over the years, you know that, Sakura?" Naruto said.

"This isn't the time to compliment me, you idiot!"

"Alright, I'm sorry!"

Naruto turned his attention to Sasuke.

"You ready, Sasuke?" Naruto said.

"Ready for what?"

"The four of us...We're defecting from Konoha."


	6. Fight for Freedom

**Chapter 6 - Fight for Freedom**

Five ninja surrounded the group.

"Well, well..." said one of the shinobi. "Naruto, you've finally decided to go AWOL. I was wondering when you'd finally do something like this."

"Yamato..." Naruto began. "Don't impede us, or I will kill you. I won't hold back."

"Kakashi, get the hell out of here." Sasuke said.

"I've come to stop my former students. I will succeed." Kakashi replied.

"And I've come to destroy the traitor of the Hyuga clan." said Hiashi, the third member of the five-man squad that had appeared.

"Sakura, it's not too late to come back! Don't make us hurt you!" Shizune pleaded.

"It _is_ too late. Don't try to convince me otherwise. And don't try to stop us." Sakura replied.

The fifth member spoke up, saying, "Naruto...Sasuke...Sakura...You're going to be stopped."

"Iruka...I'm sorry I have to do this..." Naruto whispered. He disappeared. A few seconds later, Iruka fell to the ground with a loud thud, a kunai embedded in the back of his skull.

"Split up!" Naruto yelled, reappearing. The four defectors rushed in opposite directions.

* * *

"Sakura!" Shizune yelled, chasing her into a wooded area. "Come back! I'm not going to hurt you!"

Sakura turned around while in the air, and landed on a tree branch. She then launched herself at Shizune, and landed a chakra-enhanced punch into the pit of Shizune's stomach.

"...But I'm going to hurt you." Sakura replied.

"Well..." Shizune muttered, blood seeping from her open mouth. "I guess I'm going to have to fight you."

Shizune landed her own punch, and separated herself from Sakura. She made a few hand seals, and a mass of chakra began to form around her body.

"Chakra Armor." Sakura surmised. "Easy enough to get through."

Sakura rushed at Shizune, and the two began to spar. Neither landed a blow for ten minutes.

Shizune could tell that Sakura was beginning to tire out. She took advantage of this. Shizune feinted left with a hook, and then delivered a destructive uppercut to Sakura's jaw. Sakura fell to the ground.

"I've beaten you. Your jaw's broken." Shizune said. Shizune then felt a sharp pain in her torso. She looked down, and saw two kunai protruding from her chest.

"The weak spot of chakra armor is near the tip of the shoulderblades." Sakura said.

"But...how...?" Shizune whispered, as she face-planted on the ground.

"Genjutsu. You were so caught up in our little sparring match that you forgot about my other techniques." Sakura explained. "I'm sorry I had to do this, Shizune. But you left me with no other choice."

* * *

"You filthy, branch family bastard!" Hiashi yelled murderously, following Neji through the forest. When the two had reached a small clearing, they stopped.

"You should have kept running!" Hiashi exclaimed, making a hand seal. "I'm going to kill you!"

Neji replied, "You shouldn't speak so rashly, Hiashi. Maybe you'll get beaten."

"Hah! The cursed seal will keep that from happening!" Hiashi said, making another hand seal. When Neji was not in any pain, he said, "What? Why isn't this working? What have you done?"

Neji revealed his forehead, which had been hidden behind his hair.

"The seal...It's...gone..." Hiashi remarked.

"Prepare to die for what you did to my father!" Neji said, rushing at his uncle. The two began to spar, both using Gentle Fist taijutsu.

"How did you get this good?" Hiashi exclaimed. "Even I wasn't as good as you are when I was your age!"

Neji snarled back an unheard comment, landing a hit to Hiashi's chest. Hiashi staggered a bit. Neji took stance, and then rushed at his uncle again.

"Eight Trigrams: Sixty-four Palms!"

Hiashi was hit sixty-four times by Neji; Hiashi had most of his chakra cut off from being used.

"You've become evil. The branch family was not meant to have the power that you do. I must not die by your hand...You'll become too strong..." Hiashi murmured. He drew a kunai from his pouch, and raised it to his neck.

"No!" Neji yelled. He snatched the knife from his uncle. "I want you to tell me what you did to my father one more time before I kill you."

"Haha...I had him killed. I paid off the enemy to take Hinata when she was young and we were at war...I killed the enemy and forced your father to take the blame. He was rebellious fool. He needed to die in order to preserve the Hyuga line." Hiashi said.

Neji was crying now.

"I'll never forgive you!"

Neji plunged the kunai he had taken from Hiashi into Hiashi's heart.

Hiashi gasped.

"It has...come to pass...The Hyuga line...will die out because of you...You black being...Enjoy your new power while it lasts...You'll accomplish great things...Terrible things..." Hiashi said with his last breaths.

"What new power?" Neji asked. He suddenly felt a sharp pain in his eyes. He yelled, experencing an excruciating pain. Then, just as suddenly as the pain had come, the pain subsided. Neji's eyesight had become much better.

"What just happened?" Neji said.

"...Black...Bya...ku...gan..." Hiashi said, dying.

* * *

"Sasuke!" Kakashi bellowed, rushing at his former student with a mass of lightning in his right hand.

"Kakashi!" Sasuke yelled back, approaching Kakashi with a Chidori in his left hand. The two met in a clash of blue; both were sent flying backward.

"Mangekyou Sharingan!" Kakashi yelled, his eye switching designs from the normal Sharingan to his Mangekyou. "Kamui!"

A swirl began to form on Sasuke's chest.

"You think you're Sharingan can beat mine?" Sasuke said, activating his own Mangekyou Sharingan. "Amaterasu!"

Kakashi was enveloped in black fire; he fell to the ground, pounding his fists into the earth, and screaming in excrutiating pain.

Sasuke left Kakashi to burn for a few seconds, and then called off his fire.

"You shouldn't have done that!" Kakashi announced, disappearing from his spot on the ground.

"Where'd you go, you bastard?" Sasuke said. "Come out and fight, you coward!"

"As you wish!" Kakashi yelled. He appeared behind Sasuke, and impaled him with a Raikiri attack. Sasuke seemed to be unaffected, while Kakashi was still staggering from the burns he had received.

Sasuke's body disappeared in a cloud of white smoke.

"You know," Sasuke's voice rang out. "I always hated fighting Naruto because of his shadow clones. It turns out that they're quite useful. I wish I would've started using shadow clones a long time ago."

"Sasuke!" Kakashi cried out. "Fight me like a man!"

"Very well!" Sasuke said, appearing in front of Kakashi, sword drawn. Sasuke slashed twice, connecting once. Kakashi had received a large gash on his chest, which began to drip red liquid.

Kakashi attempted to use Kamui once more, but Sasuke conjured a giant warrior to block it.

"Naruto destroyed my old Susanoo." Sasuke explained. "After the evil was purged from my heart, this new version appeared to me."

The new Susanoo resembled Itachi's; it had the Totsuka sword and the Yata no Kagami, a shield. However, this new version also had a new weapon: a large, fire conjuring seal was present on each of its hands.

"Try to suck this behemoth into your jutsu." Sasuke said, tauntingly. Then, "Susanoo, attack!"

A large hand flew at Kakashi, who just barely dodged being hit. However, the fire seal on Susanoo's hand was activated; Kakashi was engulfed in fire a second time. When the fire on Kakashi's body died out, his face was unrecognizable. The only thing that remained the same was his Sharingan eye.

"I can...barely...stand..." Kakashi muttered. He was bleeding profusely all over.

Sasuke appeared in front of him, after Susanoo had been dematerialized. Sasuke held out his right hand.

"Kakashi...You are not an Uchiha. I am taking the Uchiha part of you away. You were never meant to have it." Sasuke announced. He stuck out two fingers and his thumb, and plunged them into Kakashi's eye socket. With a sharp, swift tug, the eye was ripped free of its prison.

Kakashi fainted, falling to the ground.

* * *

"Naruto, don't release it! I'll be able to stop you; there's no point!"

Naruto had undone his seal, and had transformed his left arm into a large claw-like appendage.

"Very well, I'll seal it back!" Yamato cried. He made a few hand seals, and threw a blue chakra whip at Naruto. It connected and stuck to Naruto's claw arm. Yamato began to pull hard on the chakra whip, but nothing was happening.

"Surprised?" Naruto said, when Yamato had failed.

Suddenly, Naruto appeared behind Yamato, and blasted him with the claw arm. Yamato flew forward, skidding to a halt on the ground twenty feet away. Naruto reverted to his normal state.

Naruto formed eight shadow clones, three of which began to form a Rasenshuriken.

"I know how that jutsu works! It will have no effect on me!" Yamato said. "Don't try it!"

Naruto and his clones rushed at Yamato; Yamato dispersed all of the clones, but one. The one lunged at Yamato, with its wind attack leading its body.

Yamato sent a short blast of chakra at the clone; it was destroyed, and the Rasenshuriken dispersed.

Yamato landed on the ground.

"Where are you, Naruto?" Yamato said. "Come out and fight me!"

Suddenly, four hands emerged from the ground, grasping Yamato's legs.

"Shit!" Yamato yelled, as he saw the real Naruto running at him with a new technique. It looked like a Rasengan, except that it was tan in color and had spots where it shimmered.

"Diamond Dust Rasengan!" Naruto shouted, punching Yamato with the attack. At first, nothing happened. The attack merely dissapated.

"That's it?" Yamato said, chuckling. "That's the best you can..."

A large explosion silenced Yamato.

When the dust from the attack had cleared, Naruto found Yamato in a crater fifteen feet deep.

"What...was...?" Yamato struggled to say.

"My Diamond Dust Rasengan." Naruto explained. "I combine wind and earth chakra with a Rasengan; it produces a mini sandstorm with sharp diamonds encased inside. It's power is great, as you've just experienced."

* * *

Naruto left Yamato in the crater, and hurried to find the others. Soon enough, he found them all, and they continued their flight.

"Neji, what's up with your eyes?" Naruto asked as the group was fleeing.

"What do you mean?" Neji replied.

"They're black." Naruto said.

"That's a bit strange..." Neji said. "I'm not sure. But I took Hiashi out, that's all I care about at the moment."

"Sasuke, did you kill Kakashi?" Sakura asked.

"No, but I did leave him to die. I also took his Sharingan away." Sasuke replied.

"I sense some shinobi approaching our victims. We better hurry and get out of here!" Naruto said suddenly.

"Naruto, where exactly are we going?" Sasuke asked.

"We're going to a far away country, where we can form our own Village and then go out and instill our beliefs of love and freedom in the world. We will become Higure: we are going to bring dusk, that is, bring an end, to the current world full of hatred. Only then will the world be safe to live in."


	7. Preparations

**Chapter 7 - Preparations**

One Week Later

"Sir, I'd like to buy five tickets to the East Continent." Neji said to a man that was sheltered by a small booth with a barred window.

"Five tickets to the East Continent, huh? What are you ninja going to do over there? Not gonna cause any trouble are you?" the man asked, obviously suspicious of the five gathered.

"Just sell me the damn tickets! Or do you not want my money?" Neji retorted.

"Fine, fine. Here you are." the man said, sliding five tickets through a slot at the bottom of the barred window. Neji turned to face his comrades: Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and a new addition to the team. Her name was Mitsuko; she wore a long, flowing, white kimono. She had very light blonde hair, and her eyes contrasted this as they were a heavy brown color.

Mitsuko had joined the group on behalf of the Kazekage, Gaara of the Sand. After the initial four-man group had won their battles and escaped from Konoha, they stopped in Sunagakure. Naruto pleaded with Gaara for his support, as the two knew the same pain. After a few hours of contemplation, Gaara had decided that he believed in Naruto and his vision for the new world. Gaara gave Naruto his full support, and requested that a Jonin from the Hidden Sand be added to the team. All four members agreed with the Kazekage's decision; thus, Mitsuko became a member of the new five-man squad.

The group was currently in the southernmost part of the Sand Country, at a port city called Inari.

"Are we all set, Neji?" Naruto said.

"Yes, the ship leaves port in about an hour." Neji replied. "We should gather supplies during our time before departure. We have a long journey ahead of us."

"Alright. Mitsuko and I will go get food from the local grocer." Naruto said to the group.

"I'll get some first aid equipment." Sakura told everyone.

"I guess Neji and I will get weapons and other battle supplies." Sasuke said.

"Alright then, everyone meet back at this spot in an hour." Neji said. Then, the group split up.

* * *

At the grocery store, Naruto and Mitsuko gathered some produce, meat, and a large supply of salt for preserving the food.

"Mitsuko, I've wanted to ask you a question for a while now." Naruto said, when the two were picking out produce from a large display at the front of the shop.

"...Well...What might that be?" Mitsuko replied sheepishly.

"Why did Gaara send you to come with us instead of one of the other...should I say...more qualified Jonin? I mean, he even said it himself that you're one of the weaker ninja that's part of Suna." Naruto explained.

Mitsuko, surprisingly, was not offended by this statement.

She answered, "Gaara thinks that my abilities would be a good counter for the shinobi of the Leaf Village."

"What kinds of abilities do you have?" Naruto said.

"I can control light." Mitsuko said, looking directly at Naruto, their gazes meeting. "Light is essential for humans. Without light, we wouldn't be able to see."

"What the hell? Where'd you go?" Naruto said. Mitsuko had disappeared with a snap of her fingers.

"But light is also very dangerous," Mitsuko said, reappearing. "It can burn things if you're not careful with the way you use it."

"What do you mean?" Naruto said, displaying one of his shortcomings: the need for things to be completely spelled out.

"Just watch." Mitsuko said, lifting her hand and pointing her finger at a small piece of paper on the ground. "If I concentrate light on that piece of paper, watch what happens."

Mitsuko concentrated; a beam of light erupted from her finger. The beam slowly began to burn the paper up.

"That's what happens if I use thirty percent of my power."

"Oh, okay, I get it now." Naruto said. "That would be a good counter for the Yamanaka mind control and the Nara shadow possession. Your light moves faster than those techniques. It's good we have you, because no one else on the team can really counter those abilities very well."

"I take it that you're complementing me, Naruto. Well, thank you." Mitsuko replied.

Naruto smiled.

* * *

"Neji, what's the deal with your eyes?" Sasuke asked.

"I'm not sure. When my uncle died, he merely said, 'Black Byakugan', whatever that means. I don't know what he meant." Neji said.

The two were buying many kunai and shuriken; Neji bought himself a sword that was made of tempered steel.

"Is your vision any different than it was before?" Sasuke told Neji.

"Things are a lot clearer now, and I can see further distances than before. But that's it." Neji said.

"Have you tried activating your Byakugan since your battle with Hiashi?" Sasuke said.

"No. Do you think I should do it?"

"Yes, try it out."

"Okay."

Neji made hand seals.

"Byakugan!" Neji opened his eyes, and what he saw astonished him.

"Whoa..." Neji muttered. "My Byakugan is completely different. Not only can I see individual chakra points, but now I can see how they are intertwined with a person's entire body. I could kill someone with just one strike with this new vision."

"Strange." Sasuke commented. "Why would that vision come now?"

"No idea." Neji replied.

* * *

Everyone met at the spot they agreed to an hour later, and they boarded a ship. They soon were on their way to the East Continent.


End file.
